An Odd Dawn
by Little-Silver-Sparrow
Summary: This is the sequel to A Strange Night. This takes place after Harry is born because I couldn't resist including him.


Disclaimer: All recognizable characters and settings belong to J.K. Rowling.

Warning: This story is slash, has a lemon, and mentions a character death. If you don't like it, press the back button.

When James got home from his latest shift as an auror, he walked into the living room to find a pale and wide-eyed Severus clutching their one-and-a-half-year-old son to his chest, looking for all the world like he was in the middle of a panic attack.

"Severus? Lovely, what's wrong?" James called, approaching Severus slowly as if he were a frightened animal.

Severus didn't answer right away, but kept clutching Harry to his chest and lightly stroking his hair. Harry's bright green eyes—the same color as his great-great-grandfather on the Prince side—were wide open and he reached his chubby hand up to latch onto a lock of Severus' shoulder-length hair. Severus took the little hand in his much larger one and turned his head to coo at the toddler.

"Severus?"

Severus glanced over at James and inched closer to him. "Dumbledore got through the wards today." he murmured, "He came in like they didn't even cause him a problem and he went on and on about how there's a prophecy about Harry and that the Dark Lord is most likely going to come to try to kill him. James, I'm not sure what to do."

James reached his little family and held them both in his arms. Severus was trembling slightly and Harry was stubbornly tugging on his hair again. James was the one to pull his hand away this time. "No tugging on Papa's hair, little buddy." Harry gurgled happily at him and reached for his glasses. James chuckled as he guided Severus to sit on the couch. He held out his arms in an offer to hold Harry, but Severus shook his head, not willing to let him go.

"Alright, tell me what happened Severus. Slowly and one step at a time."

Severus took a deep breath before speaking. "I was coming up from my lab to check on Harry because he had suddenly started crying on the baby monitor. When I got there, Dumbledore was in the doorway going towards the nursery. I ran past him and grabbed Harry before he could get in the room and pulled out my wand. The bastard came in calm and collected as always and said that there was a prophecy concerning Harry and the Dark Lord and some nonsense about Harry being the only on who can defeat him."

"Did he actually tell you the prophecy?" James interrupted.

Severus snorted and shot him a look. "Of course not. When has that old codger ever been straightforward with _anyone_? Anyways, he told me one of his spies had told him that the Dark Lord was going to come to kill Harry, but I shouldn't worry and that I should give Harry to him for safe-keeping—as if he were an object, James!"

"What did you do?"

"I told him to get the bloody fuck out of my house and away from my child before I cursed him until he wouldn't be able to crawl. When he just stood there I cast a cutting curse at him. It didn't even faze the bugger."

"You shouldn't swear so much where Harry can hear you lovely."

Severus just glared at him and continued, "He just kept standing there and asking for Harry. I cast just about every curse I could think of at him, but they only nicked him. Eventually he sighed had told me to speak with you. He said he was sure you would know the right thing to do and he'd be back for Harry when I saw reason. Reason! If ever comes close to Harry again I'll blast him into oblivion!"

James had had his arm around Severus' shoulders as he talked in an effort to sooth his distraught husband. When Severus finished speaking he pulled him against his chest and tucked his head under his chin. Harry made a cooing sound and his arms waved aimlessly in the air. James smiled and tickled his belly; Severus' lips twitched into the best smile he could make at the moment.

"When did Dumbledore show up Severus?"

"About two in the afternoon."

James cast a quick spell to check the time. It was 5:30. "And you've been holding Harry this whole time?"

"I set him down once to change his nappy."

James thought for a minute. "I think you need a good cup of tea lovely." He kissed the side of Severus' head. Severus just hummed in reply.

Before long the kettle was whistling in the kitchen and James came in with two steaming cups of Earl Grey. Severus looked conflicted whether to accept the cup of tea—which he felt he dearly needed—and put Harry down for the first time in hours, or to keep his grip on the tiny wizard. James set the cups down and held out his arms again for Harry. This time Severus handed the toddler over without comment and quickly took several big gulps. (For his part, Harry handled the constant holding without much fuss.)

"I won't let that man touch our son, James."

James looked at him calmly over Harry's head. "Neither will I…Severus, I think we should move into Potter Manor."

"Potter Manor? But we haven't been there since your parents…"

"Died, yes. But it's my ancestral home and the wards are excellent, far better than the ones surrounding this house. And Dumbledore obviously can get in here. At Potter Manor we'll be well protected and I can even employ a Charms Master to cast the Fidelius on it to make the protections even stronger. I won't let anyone hurt you or Harry."

Severus, not able to come up with a better plan, nodded. The couple finished their tea and put Harry down for a nap—being held for hours on end was apparently exhausting—before quickly packing most of their possessions. Severus managed to fit his entire lab into a magical trunk with three expandable compartments. James packed away his brooms and tucked his Invisibility Cloak away with the rest of his robes. Both of them packed Harry's things, including several large stuffed animals and a toy broom—the broom took quite a lot of convincing on James' part to get Severus to agree to bring it, though Severus couldn't really come up with a valid argument as he'd had no problem with letting Harry play on it before and his books had taken up an entire trunk.

By the end of the next morning James and Severus had moved into the master bedroom of Potter Manor—the house elves wouldn't hear of them moving into any other bedroom—and Harry had a makeshift nursery across the hall. James called in sick to work and a Charms Master was coming at one in the afternoon to perform the Fidelius.

Severus had taken to fiddling with his wedding band, a nervous habit he had picked up soon after they were married. The house elves tried to offer him tea and were constantly asking if he needed anything. He tried to send them away as politely as possible, but each rebuke was getting more snappish than the last. The only times he seem to calm down at all were when he was playing with Harry or sitting with James while waiting for the Charms Master.

When the Charms Master finally came Severus had to fight himself not to sag with relief. He had to fight even harder when the Fidelius was completed and Remus Lupin, having made an Unbreakable Vow that he would not reveal their location to Dumbledore, the Dark Lord, or anyone else wishing to harm them, was made the Secret Keeper. It was either him or Sirius Black, and as much as Severus hated to admit it, Lupin was much more responsible than Black and Lupin was much better at keeping himself from being noticed; Severus had vetoed Pettigrew as soon as his name came up.

After Lupin and the Charms Master had left and Harry was put down for a nap after being fed and fussed over by his parents, James took Severus by the hand and led him to the bedroom. He shut the door behind them and walked over to Severus.

He put his arms around his neck and pulled his head closer for a kiss. "You," James murmured, punctuating each word with a kiss, "have," kiss, "been," kiss, "much," kiss, "too," kiss, "stressed." And Severus was pulled in for one more kiss; James' tongue parted his lips and curled around his own. Severus moaned into his husband's mouth and pulled him even closer.

One of James' hands wove itself into Severus' hair while the other started to undo Severus' robes.

"Stop," Severus whispered, "Harry…So much to do…"

"Nonsense," James said, "Harry's fast asleep and we'll hear him on the baby monitor if he wakes up. And as for things to do…" he trailed off and gave Severus a leer.

Now both of James' hands were undoing the clasps on Severus' robes and it wasn't long before Severus started doing the same to James' robes. Soon they were both completely naked. James pushed Severus onto the bed and began kissing every inch of his face; his forehead, his eyes, his cheeks, his mouth…His left and held Severus' and his right stroked up and down Severus' side. Severus' free arm circled around James' back to pull him against Severus.

The hand that had been stroking Severus' side slid across his chest to play with his nipple. Severus moaned into James' mouth.

James stopped kissing Severus to suck on his other nipple, circling it with his tongue. Severus whimpered beneath him and James moved to suck on his other nipple. Then he started a slow trail of licks and kisses down Severus' stomach to his now fully erect cock. It was already leaking pre-come freely as James kissed the tip. Two wonderful hands griped his hair and a deep moan from his beloved urged him on.

James bobbed his head and sucked, twirling his tongue around the head occasionally. The hands in his hair gripped harder to the point of pain, but James didn't care. As far as he was concerned, they hadn't done this I much too long and Severus needed something to make him relax. Severus spread his legs wider and was well past the point of coherency, only mewling things like, "_Oh—James—don't stop—yes—yes—I'm gonna—"._

He never managed to finish the sentence, though James was grateful for the warning nonetheless.

Salty fluid spurted out of Severus' cock and James struggled at first to swallow it all, but he managed.

James crawled back up the bed to kiss Severus again, their tongues mingling and Severus tasted his own come. Severus sucked on James' tongue and James moaned. Then one of James' hands slipped down to between Severus' legs and a finger started to circle his entrance. Severus bucked into the hand as James flung his other arm out franticly in search of his wand. He found it and inserted the tip into Severus. He said the preparation spell and his husband made an appreciative noise at the charm. It emptied him of any waste and slicked his inner walls with lubricant. James inserted his index finger much to Severus' pleasure. In, out, in, out. Over and over again until Severus as bucking into his hand. Then he pushed in the second finger and started to scissor them. Severus wrapped his legs around James' waist to pull him even closer than he already was and he gripped James' shoulders so hard he was sure he'd leave bruises as they continued to exchange open-mouthed kisses. Soon the third and final finger was pushed in. Severus was moaning consistently in James' mouth and whined—which he would later deny—when James pulled them out.

He sighed in bliss though when he felt something larger than the three fingers push its way into him. James sunk all the way in and paused to allow Severus to adjust. Severus' legs tightened around his waist and he started to move. The tempo was slow and steady at first, but soon quickened. Severus was again past the point of coherency and kept calling out James' name over and over again. James' pace became frantic as he plunged himself in and out of his husband as fast as he could, hitting his prostate with every thrust.

"_I love you, I love you, I love you!"_ Severus repeated, punctuated every now and then with James' name.

"I love you too, Severus." James murmured in his ear as Severus came harder than he had in months. Apparently the tightening of Severus' inner walls was too much for James for he emptied himself into the most beautiful body he'd ever seen. They both collapsed—Severus onto the bed and James onto Severus—both breathing deeply.

James gently pulled himself out of the former Slytherin in kissed him one last time before they both succumbed to exhausted sleep.

James awoke to Harry sniffling softly over the baby monitor. He kissed his husband on the cheek before he pulled himself out of bed, put on a random pair of trousers, and walk and across the hall. His little son was sitting up in his crib, the mobile swaying slightly above his head. Bright green eyes locked onto hazel and two chubby arms reached up in invitation. James picked him up. The little wizard cooed and griped a fistful of his hair and tugged with all his might.

"Da! Da! Da!" he cried with each tug.

James chuckled. "Yes, Harry, Daddy's here."

"Papa."

"Papa's sleeping right now buddy."

Big green eyes teared up. "Papa…"

James felt his heart start to beat faster in panic. "Shh, shh. Alright, I'll bring you to Papa, but you have to be _quiet._" Almost immediately, Harry was back to his normally happy self and gave a delighted gurgle. James tiptoed across the hall and eased the bedroom door open with the utmost care; it wouldn't do to have Harry be as quiet as a mouse and for _him _to wake Severus up.

Harry reached out towards the snoozing Severus as soon as he saw him. James sped up his pace to the bed lest Harry start making noises in his impatience, but stayed as silent as possible. He set Harry and the bed and the little tyke crawled over to Severus—who was still naked, James realized with a jolt, but was thankfully covered by the blankets—for a snuggle. Severus shifted to lie on his side. Onyx eyes crept open to meet burning green.

Severus looked up questioningly at James. James shrugged, "He was asking for you," he said. Severus nodded before grinning at his son. Harry giggled as Severus poked and tickled the little boy's belly. The toddler shrieked with laughter, even more so when his Daddy joined in. James summoned a ball which the family rolled around on top of the covers; by the end of the game Harry had crawled over every inch of the bed in pursuit of the bright red orb.

Eventually, though, Harry grew tired and the ball rolled onto the floor as he drifted off to his own private dreamland, soon followed by his parents, one resting on either side of him. The weeks passed in much the same atmosphere. Harry learned to walk and was starting to speak in short, choppy, and often grammatically incorrect sentences (Severus was working with him on that), Severus stalked the entire Manor up on potions and then some, and James, after mastering the fine art of apparating unnoticed to and from work, was able to focus on his job and even got promoted. Severus earned his Mastery in Potions, becoming the youngest Potions Master in centuries. James and Severus would often duel each other in one of the unused rooms while Harry took his naps which allowed Severus to come up with a rather large assortment of new spells. And all throughout this time, Harry toddled, then walked, then ran, and finally zoomed through the Manor faster than what either Severus or James thought was possible for a one-and-a-half-year-old. (The house elves and his parents had begun to find him curled up in the oddest of places from when he'd gotten tired after a long day of running after imaginary creatures.)

Potter Manor had become a haven, a happy protected bubble, for the small family while a war that didn't seem like it could ever end raged on outside. James did his best to help as an auror of course, and Severus brewed as many healing potions as he could in his lab to be sent over to St. Mungo's, but their efforts barely seemed to make a dent in the destruction happening beyond the Manor's wards.

Then on Halloween night, the most wonderful and terrible thing happened. Apparently, the prophecy had scared Severus so much the night Dumbledore appeared in their home could have been talking about two children: Harry Potter and Neville Longbottom. The Dark Lord and three of his closest followers had broken into the Longbottom home. His three followers—Barty Crouch Jr., Bellatrix Lestrange, and Rodolphus Lestrange—had tortured Frank and Alice Longbottom into insanity and Voldemort himself cast the Killing Curse at little Neville. However, instead of Neville just dieing like everyone would expect, the Killing Curse rebounded off the toddler—some say because of his mother invoking some kind of ancient magic by begging for his life while she was being simultaneously tortured—and hit Voldemort. The retribution for their Lord's defeat, the Death Eaters killed Neville and would have killed his parents too, had the aurors not arrived when they did.

All of Britain was celebrating but a select few who mourned the loss of the family. James could only feel guilt at not getting there in time and a vague ache at the death of two excellent aurors that would now never reach their full potential. Severus only felt compassion for Neville and an ashamed gratitude that the Dark Lord went after the Longbottoms instead of his family. Just the thought that Neville could have easily been replaced with Harry made him keep his son within his sight a full three days after he heard the news. James wasn't much better—he'd even put away Harry's toy broom, which was saying something. The Potters waited a week before lifting the Fidelius on their home.

The Potters also didn't move back into their little house in Godric's Hollow to the surprise of some. They went out a lot more now that their self-inflicted house-arrest was lifted, but the Manor had found a place in the family's heart, and Harry had thrown a giant tantrum when he'd heard his parents briefly talking about leaving it.

Besides, the wards kept a certain meddling headmaster off the property which was just fine as far as the elder Potters were concerned.

So? What do you guys think? Please send me corrections for any grammar mistakes. ^.^


End file.
